Venice Hub Part 2 Project 2009 Stefanie HicklThomas Quisinsky University of Stuttgart | Germany Our diploma thesis with the title “Venice hub” is about an infrastructure project for the City of Venice.The thesis is composed of two major parts: 1) a newly developed transportation system which improves the connection between two parts of the city, “Centro Storico and Mestre” which are both undergoing extensive urban development 2) the central transport hub especially designed for this transportation systemThe principle item of the new transportation system is an amphibian shuttle which can function as both a catamaran on the waters around Venice and a land-based Monorail on a track due to its design and equipment; with a chassis and water jet.The energy needed to run the system is produced entirely by photovoltaic panels which are an integral part of the track construction. With a gross collector area of 60 000 sq.m it is possible to develop a self-supportive transport network.The central transport hub is located at the initial point of the former railway and motorway bridge, where all incoming traffic is bundled and redirected to the shuttle network.Inside the building the main distributor floor is located under a transparent roof. It is surrounded by numerous utilities such as a through station, spacious parking areas, bus station, taxi stand, landing stage for ships and boats and retail areas. Parking areas for tourists are located close to the motorway and directly connected to the shuttle transport network.The building’s form results from a widening of the tracks from the three main directions of traffic (North Mestre, South Mestre and Venice), which are accumulated and assorted inside. Each of the three incoming tracks are split into the two other directions at the entry of the building and recombined at the exit, with another track taking the same direction. This arrangement allows shuttles that head the same direction to stop on either side of the particular platform, thus providing good orientation as well as maximum usability. Shortly before reaching the island the shuttles leave the track through an entry and exit point. From this point they act as a water-bound means of public transport. Venice is one of the most beautiful cities in the world and with its absence of cars it is today a very unique town to live.But scientists are seriously worried about its future. Global environmental changes, sea-level rise in the northern Adriatic Sea and local pollution by the heavy industry are not the only factors that are threatening Venice and the lagoon.Over the past decades, Venetians have been leaving their town, settling on the mainland. Therefore, Venice is losing its socio-economic diversity and changes towards a mono-economy anchored in tourism. In addition, the city is threatened by a crumbling infrastructure.Solving the city´s many problems is an enormous challenge. All aspects must be taken into account. Saving and regenerating the city is not only a matter of technology or finance, but also of politics, organization and management.As a World Heritage site, Venice benefits from significant national and international attention.This makes it ideal for a bold social, ecological and architectural approach that would turn Venice into a future model for cities throughout the world.The two students Stefanie Hickl and Thomas Quisinsky created a scheme that illustrates their ability to develop an architectural proposal which is environmentally intelligent and constructional consistent, creating a public transport building of high architectural quality and taking into account the particular characteristics of the site set between the city and the lagoon.The students’ work is characterized by a succinct aesthetic in both concept and graphic presentation. It further distinguishes by the unusual and remarkable depth in which it takes into account urban-planning and structural considerations, as well as by its attention to the energy concept and the details of the design. Tutor(s)Prof Stefan Behling